Pity the garden blogger who is trying to find colour amongst the vegetables
I’m feeling guilty about neglecting the vegetable garden so I decide to devote a few hours to getting the small allotment in shape. It is through the gate at the bottom of the garden so I don’t have far to go. My garden is full of colourful spring bulbs but my allotment has to make do with a few yellow daffodils. The fashionable allotment colour at the moment is mid brown with some green trim. There is a heap of (brown) garden compost in front of the chair that needs to be spread over the beds.
Small allotment before tidy up
I need tools before I start work and find my first splash of colour. We photographers are so innovative. I also have some packets of seeds to sow. Yes the hoe is a funny shape but it is very easy to use and prevents back strain. My camera is to hand should anything exciting happen – or not!
Garden tools, including camera
I need to weed and prune in the perennial herb bed. Note the gap in the fence and the flattened earth – Mr Badger is visiting again. Back left is Sage (Salvia officinalis) which needs a heavy prune to keep it neat and to stop the plant getting too woody. Back right are the pale green leaves of Garlic chives (Allium tuberosum). Front right is the buried pot which stops the Mint escaping and creating havoc and next to it are the ordinary Chives (Allium schoenoprasum). Front left is Winter Savory (Satureja montana) which also needs a trim. I think I have lost my French Tarragon (Artemesia dracunculus) and Oregano (Origanum vulgare ‘Compactum’) both of which lie under the Badger’s path.
Herb bed with Badger trail
I am not good at overwintering salad leaves and get very mixed results. The seeds for these were sown in August and the plants put under the cloche shown in the first picture. The Lettuce did really well.
Lettuce 'Bronze Arrowhead'
But the Chicory – they made no effort at all. They should be ashamed of themselves.
Chicory 'Grumolo Bionda'
I dug up the some of the remaining Beetroot ‘Chioggia’ from last year. They did surprisingly well over the winter considering they had no protection and temperatures fell to -11C (12F).
Beetroot 'Chioggia'
I spread the compost around and sowed some seeds:
- Climbing Pea ‘Stenu’ which will climb up a cane and netting support.
- Dwarf Snap Pea ‘Zuccola’ with some small branches and twigs pushed into the soil for support.
- Beetroot ‘Chioggia’
- Radishes ‘French Breakfat 3′ and a trial yellow radish from Marshalls Seeds (free with an order)
- Parsley ‘Lisette’
- Leaf Beet ‘Bright Lights’
I felt quite pleased with myself when I had finished.
Small allotment after seed sowing (1)
Small allotment after seed sowing (2)
The cold winter seems to have improved the Rhubarb which is growing very strongly. I think the winter hibernation has done it some good.
Rhubarb
In an effort to make the post a tad more interesting I thought I’d feature a faithful pet amongst the vegetables. That didn’t go so well. She ran back into the garden and up the Eucalyptus tree. Now I have a colour combination infinitely more boring than brown and green.
Cozzie
10 comments
You have my dream – a vegetable plot at the end of the garden ! Our garden is too much of an odd shape and too shady for that so I have to make do with the allotment. Sometimes I wish I could just go down the garden path rather than the couple of miles to the allotment :) Do you have another larger allotment as well ? Brown is certainly the fashionable allotment colour at the moment – three tons of it arrived here today to fill my new raised beds.
Anna: Yes we have a larger on about 2 minutes away from this one. Very handy!
Well it all looks good to me!
Susan: Thank you Susan!
Interesting enough without the shy kitty. Your vegetable garden looks very good-not at all like it has been neglected and shame on those chicory!
Tina: Thanks. It has taken a few years to get it to look like that :-)
We have just started clearing our allotment too. I have planted some seeds in pots, hope they all come. Its good to have a place to sow veg next to the house. Our allotment is in the village thay we used to live. About 10 mins away.
Judith: Yes it is good to have the allotment very close. Looking forward to pictures of yours!
I love your plastic row cover. Much better looking than those that are made out of plastic tarp. Did you make it yourself, or does someone manufacture those?
Megan: I bought the cloches (Longrow Super Cloches). Very handy they are too.
:) Silly kitty. I think the brown and green color scheme is very stylish, anyway it’s necessary in order to provide the greater range of colors in the fall. Sometimes I grow ‘Bright Lights’ chard in winter, mainly as an ornamental, just to get a few extra shades in . The did terribly this year, though, thanks to squirrels and snow. Mr. Badger… he’s not exactly tip-toeing through your garden, huh? Good luck with that!
Karen: If Mr Badger wasn’t nocturnal I’d give him a good talking too! All quiet on the squirrel front at the moment. They must be annoying someone else.
Lovely veg patch. The rhubarb is looking so healthy!
HM: Thank you. Rhubarb is one of my favourites!
I don’t think posts about vegetable gardens need embellishing. I enjoy looking at them even more than photos of flower gardens, more individual (though most people, I suspect, would say otherwise).
Strange, thinking about this . . . one’s own cats are very definitely individuals (!) with strongly defined characters. But, when in a photo they become – simply cats.
Your hoe, on the other hand . . .
(Does it really help with your back? . . . it looks like a horticultural version of a Henry Hoover.)
Lucy
Lucy: I agree with you about cats. They are very difficult to photograph. All life disappears!
Yes the hoe is brilliant. The design encourages you to stand upright so there is less strain on your back.
Looking good EG!
French tarragon’s a bit tender so winter might have got it instead of Bodger the Badger.
VP: I expect you are right about the French Tarragon given our bad winter. Mr Badger is exonerated for now!
Great results from the aftershot. Your veggie garden is ready for another season of yummy produce. :) Poor kitty must of got stage fright when the camera came out, lol.
Racquel: Cats never pose when you want them to!
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